Why is Bexar County breaking early voter turnout records?

SAN ANTONIO – The number of voters in Bexar County is turning out to vote early in person at a record pace.

A spokeswoman for the Bexar County Department of Elections said turnouts on Monday and Tuesday were county records at 46,903 and 48,067, respectively.

Voter turnout is traditionally higher in presidential elections. KSAT asked Jon Taylor, UTSA professor and chair of the political science and geography department, why this year's presidential election is different.

“Again, it could just be voter enthusiasm,” said Taylor, who also noted that polls appeared to be well attended across the state. “Issues that are directly related to what voters are thinking about, be it reproductive choice, be it the border, be it the economy. That's what drives voters. It’s obvious.”

Following KSAT's interview with Taylor on Wednesday morning, an additional 47,739 voters in Bexar County cast their ballots on Wednesday.

However, by this point, voters had sent in more mail-in ballots in both 2016 and 2020, making turnout seem less impressive.

KSAT used historical data from the Texas Secretary of State's Office to compare the current election to the previous two.

ONLY IN PERSON

In terms of numbers, early voting in 2024 is far higher than in the previous two elections.

After Bexar County released its in-person voting totals on Wednesday, 28,500 more voters attended in person than during the same period in 2016 and 33,700 more than in 2020.

However, Bexar County is steadily seeing new voters. The big jumps in daily, in-person voting are less drastic than they appear when measured as a percentage of overall voter turnout.

• 2016 — 1,045,360 registered voters

• 2020 — 1,189,373 registered voters (+144,013)

• 2024 — 1,295,580 registered voters (+106,207)

Still, the 11% turnout at the end of the second day was almost on par with the 10.9% turnout in 2016, but above the 9.2% turnout in 2020.

PERSONALITY AND POST COMBINED

Once mail-in ballots are included, early voting turnout in Bexar County in 2024 will be less impressive and behind previous years.

Wednesday's absentee vote totals were not immediately available on the Secretary of State's website. But according to the raw numbers, 13,500 more ballots were cast in the first two days of the 2020 election compared to this year, thanks to 52,600 votes cast by mail.

However, there have been 16,600 more ballots so far in the 2024 election than at the same time in 2016.

However, with 250,000 voters added to the Bexar County voter rolls over the last eight years, overall turnout in the 2024 election falls short of the 2016 and 2020 elections.

NOTE – Texas added six additional days of early voting in 2020 due to the pandemic

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